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Anime Impact: The Movies and Shows that Changed the World of Japanese Animation by Chris Stuckmann
cyanide_latte's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
3.25
Not a bad little book of essays. I would encourage anyone going into this to look at this largely as a collection of personal essays from the contributors, rather than a comprehensive book of anime film history and its impact on various parts of the world, because there is very little of the latter here. The majority of the essays focus on the writers listing how certain series or films impacted their lives personally, so if that's what you're here for, this book will be a treat! If you want something that's more about the history aspect and how anime has impacted various markets, altered distribution of media, etc. then it's best to look elsewhere.
For the most part, I enjoyed this collection well enough once I realized the nature of it. I must admit to being baffled by the inclusion of some series or films and not certain others that I recall having a more widespread impact in the western sphere, but again, these essays largely seem to come from personal experience and focus on the personal experience, rather than solely concerning history on audience and market.
For the most part, I enjoyed this collection well enough once I realized the nature of it. I must admit to being baffled by the inclusion of some series or films and not certain others that I recall having a more widespread impact in the western sphere, but again, these essays largely seem to come from personal experience and focus on the personal experience, rather than solely concerning history on audience and market.
ashleylm's review against another edition
3.0
I have some major reservations about this. I started by giving it 5 stars for breadth and ambition, then knocking off 2 stars for execution, then putting one back because it's easy enough to skip what one doesn't like (unlike in a novel), then taking 1 off again for missed opportunity.
The main problem is the author has distributed his workload with uneven results. Some contributors write wonderfully evocative essays that arouse your interest without spoiling too much, convey a great sense of the tone and beauty of a show, and entice you to watch it (or lead you to realise you wouldn't like it). But other writers have crafted essays that either (a) tell you a lot about the writer and little about the show, or (b) expect you to have seen the show to be able to appreciate their article, or (c) describe the plot and events and characters with the intricacy and excitement of a perseverating tweenager, or (d) bore you to death:
"Please Teacher! and Please Twins! is a rare media-mix in which the two texts form a "worldview" that bears its own reflexivity."
Gee, I was hoping the next anime I watch would be a show which bore its own reflexivity. Thanks for the hot tip!
But as I've said, if the essay is sub-par, skip it (but either way you won't be motivated to watch the show the bad essay describes, which could be a shame. The one about Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (one of my faves!) does a terrible job of explaining what makes the show so interesting to those of us who like it. Among everything else, I think it's the gayest anime out there, like Liberace crossed with Tom of Finland crossed with Wayland Flowers and Madame level gay. Oh, and the article on Sword Art Online was given to a hater--apparently a famous hater who receives death threats via his youtube channel based on fans (crazy fans, obviously) reacting to his hatred. That's not who should be writing about the anime.
There should have been a template: what's it about? what makes it distinctive? who would like it? who wouldn't like it? what is it similar to? How is it different/better/worse than those similar shows? etc., etc. Like the OED--you don't read the definition of "asthma" and think "wow, if only the guy who wrote "slattern" had handled this word. It all matches.
Nonetheless, thanks to this book I've been exploring older anime that I never would have thought I'd be interested in. Galaxy Express has turned out to be particularly weird but haunting, and I'm glad I'm watching it.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
The main problem is the author has distributed his workload with uneven results. Some contributors write wonderfully evocative essays that arouse your interest without spoiling too much, convey a great sense of the tone and beauty of a show, and entice you to watch it (or lead you to realise you wouldn't like it). But other writers have crafted essays that either (a) tell you a lot about the writer and little about the show, or (b) expect you to have seen the show to be able to appreciate their article, or (c) describe the plot and events and characters with the intricacy and excitement of a perseverating tweenager, or (d) bore you to death:
"Please Teacher! and Please Twins! is a rare media-mix in which the two texts form a "worldview" that bears its own reflexivity."
Gee, I was hoping the next anime I watch would be a show which bore its own reflexivity. Thanks for the hot tip!
But as I've said, if the essay is sub-par, skip it (but either way you won't be motivated to watch the show the bad essay describes, which could be a shame. The one about Jojo's Bizarre Adventure (one of my faves!) does a terrible job of explaining what makes the show so interesting to those of us who like it. Among everything else, I think it's the gayest anime out there, like Liberace crossed with Tom of Finland crossed with Wayland Flowers and Madame level gay. Oh, and the article on Sword Art Online was given to a hater--apparently a famous hater who receives death threats via his youtube channel based on fans (crazy fans, obviously) reacting to his hatred. That's not who should be writing about the anime.
There should have been a template: what's it about? what makes it distinctive? who would like it? who wouldn't like it? what is it similar to? How is it different/better/worse than those similar shows? etc., etc. Like the OED--you don't read the definition of "asthma" and think "wow, if only the guy who wrote "slattern" had handled this word. It all matches.
Nonetheless, thanks to this book I've been exploring older anime that I never would have thought I'd be interested in. Galaxy Express has turned out to be particularly weird but haunting, and I'm glad I'm watching it.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
hotsake's review
3.0
The first half of the book was great and the people talked about the shows that changed/helped shape their lives. However, in the second half the tone change and I wasn't a fan, the tone was one on what life lessons each show/movie could teach you and I found that those entries ranged from annoying to tedious.
britand's review
4.0
The title requires a bit of a clarification. The authors featured in this book are focused on selling their personal stories and perspectives on the impact specific anime have had on the industry. This is basically a book of persuasive essays/anime recommendations. There are some really good authors featured here who sold me on titles I would have never otherwise checked out, but some of them are a bit dry.
Some (but not all) of the highlights of the book:
1. Chris Stuckmann (the main author)'s essay on GoShogun: The Time Etranger managed to sell me on adding a film I'd never even heard of before. (Okay, I only added it to my 'plan to watch', but that's further than a lot of anime get. I'm also not big on mecha.)
2. I'm not a Naruto fan, but Omar Rivera did a great job sharing his story and telling about how powerful Internet fandom/communities can be for introverted kids and for kids who feel embarrassed by having "nerdy" interests.
3. John Rodriguez is a great persuasive writer. I agree strongly with his thoughts on Tokyo Godfathers: "Tokyo Godfathers is often ranked as one of Mr. Kon's lesser works. Don't you buy it. It's accessible. It's uproarious. It's brave in its inclusivity."
I received a free eBook copy through a Goodreads giveaway, which had no effect on my review/rating.
Some (but not all) of the highlights of the book:
1. Chris Stuckmann (the main author)'s essay on GoShogun: The Time Etranger managed to sell me on adding a film I'd never even heard of before. (Okay, I only added it to my 'plan to watch', but that's further than a lot of anime get. I'm also not big on mecha.)
2. I'm not a Naruto fan, but Omar Rivera did a great job sharing his story and telling about how powerful Internet fandom/communities can be for introverted kids and for kids who feel embarrassed by having "nerdy" interests.
3. John Rodriguez is a great persuasive writer. I agree strongly with his thoughts on Tokyo Godfathers: "Tokyo Godfathers is often ranked as one of Mr. Kon's lesser works. Don't you buy it. It's accessible. It's uproarious. It's brave in its inclusivity."
I received a free eBook copy through a Goodreads giveaway, which had no effect on my review/rating.
armeneely's review against another edition
4.0
After many months, I’ve finally finished, and found even more anime to delve into! Thank you, Chris Stuckmann and all contributing authors! You’ve made this anime fan even happier!
ashleykitkat's review
5.0
I recommend this book to everyone to read to learn how various anime from 1963-2018 have impacted various people's lives and to learn about different anime films and series. I greatly enjoyed reminiscing reading about shows I've seen, especially my favorites, and I also now have a long list on my Netflix and VRV queues to start watching as soon as possible of those I have not seen and would now like to.
corsairs's review
5.0
Full disclosure: I'm one of the contributors to this book, and a friend of the lead author. Obviously, that colors my opinion somewhat. Yet after finishing my read-through yesterday, I feel compelled to share my thoughts. Take them with the appropriate amount of salt, but I do promise to remain objective to the best of my ability.
The first thing you need to know about "Anime Impact" is what it isn't. It isn't a list of "making-of" facts and trivia. It isn't going to delve into behind-the-scenes anecdotes. If you're expecting to walk away knowing everything there is to know about the anime being covered here, you'll likely walk away disappointed.
What "Anime Impact" IS is essays on how anime touches lives, framed around the greatest anime ever created. It's a love letter to the art, penned by folks who came upon their love through badly dubbed imports scrounged from old video stores and mail-order catalogs. And, speaking personally, that's EXACTLY what I looking for.
Over and over, I found myself marveling at how a contributor's personal experience with a particular anime mirrored my own. Jeffrey Timbrell's trauma when the Zentradi bombarded Earth in "Robotech." Emma Fyffe's inspiration at the female-forwardness of "Tenchi Muyo!" ... even if it IS just harem anime. Ernest Cline's joy at discovering "Cyber City Oedo 808" - a joy that prompted one of those frantic searches for a horribly dubbed VHS copy that those anime fans who grew up in the VHS era remember all too well.
Even when the experience wasn't related to my own, the way contributors bring bits of themselves into what otherwise might have been stuffy academic dissertations is wonderful. I don't need August Babington to tell me that Hayao Miyazaki's "Castle in the Sky" is a classic, but I sure do enjoy hearing how his discovery of "Castle" became one of the biggest nights in his life. And just try not to be affected by the story of how the Dragon Ball series literally saved Derek Padula's life.
Criticisms? I have a couple. Most of the contributors manage to inject a bit of themselves into their writing, but a few entries do fall into the "college dissertation" trap. Luckily, that's not the norm.
My larger issue, though, is the complete absence of stills or artwork. Here we have a book detailing one of the world's most beautiful art forms, and we can't get anything more than a couple drawings stuffed into the table of contents? I understand that Mango is an indie publisher and that the book already weighs in at 450 pages. Yet the exclusion of art make the entries look cold and clinical. Which is terrible, because that's precisely the opposite of what they are.
Still, I urge you to look past the bland presentation, because there's so much goodness to be found here. Again, no, you won't be slathered in facts and factoids. If that's all you want, you'll be better served by the plethora of anime fansites repositories scattered across the Internet. If you're looking for relatable stories of anime fandom, on the other hand, then you've come to the right place.
It's that relatability that makes "Anime Impact" particularly outstanding for folks who haven't yet bought into anime as a serious art form. These aren't people likely to be excited by anime trivia. Rather, they're looking for a reason not to write anime off as trivial. This book supplies those reasons. It perfectly articulates how anime can be just as (if not more) affecting than the Hollywood films most Westerners grew up with.
Which is to say, this book just might make a fan out of that non-fan in your life. And isn't that what we current fans want most? To spread our love of anime to others? I know I do. And I think "Anime Impact's" relatable recounting of classic anime can be just the thing to turn that trick. That makes it a win in my book.
The first thing you need to know about "Anime Impact" is what it isn't. It isn't a list of "making-of" facts and trivia. It isn't going to delve into behind-the-scenes anecdotes. If you're expecting to walk away knowing everything there is to know about the anime being covered here, you'll likely walk away disappointed.
What "Anime Impact" IS is essays on how anime touches lives, framed around the greatest anime ever created. It's a love letter to the art, penned by folks who came upon their love through badly dubbed imports scrounged from old video stores and mail-order catalogs. And, speaking personally, that's EXACTLY what I looking for.
Over and over, I found myself marveling at how a contributor's personal experience with a particular anime mirrored my own. Jeffrey Timbrell's trauma when the Zentradi bombarded Earth in "Robotech." Emma Fyffe's inspiration at the female-forwardness of "Tenchi Muyo!" ... even if it IS just harem anime. Ernest Cline's joy at discovering "Cyber City Oedo 808" - a joy that prompted one of those frantic searches for a horribly dubbed VHS copy that those anime fans who grew up in the VHS era remember all too well.
Even when the experience wasn't related to my own, the way contributors bring bits of themselves into what otherwise might have been stuffy academic dissertations is wonderful. I don't need August Babington to tell me that Hayao Miyazaki's "Castle in the Sky" is a classic, but I sure do enjoy hearing how his discovery of "Castle" became one of the biggest nights in his life. And just try not to be affected by the story of how the Dragon Ball series literally saved Derek Padula's life.
Criticisms? I have a couple. Most of the contributors manage to inject a bit of themselves into their writing, but a few entries do fall into the "college dissertation" trap. Luckily, that's not the norm.
My larger issue, though, is the complete absence of stills or artwork. Here we have a book detailing one of the world's most beautiful art forms, and we can't get anything more than a couple drawings stuffed into the table of contents? I understand that Mango is an indie publisher and that the book already weighs in at 450 pages. Yet the exclusion of art make the entries look cold and clinical. Which is terrible, because that's precisely the opposite of what they are.
Still, I urge you to look past the bland presentation, because there's so much goodness to be found here. Again, no, you won't be slathered in facts and factoids. If that's all you want, you'll be better served by the plethora of anime fansites repositories scattered across the Internet. If you're looking for relatable stories of anime fandom, on the other hand, then you've come to the right place.
It's that relatability that makes "Anime Impact" particularly outstanding for folks who haven't yet bought into anime as a serious art form. These aren't people likely to be excited by anime trivia. Rather, they're looking for a reason not to write anime off as trivial. This book supplies those reasons. It perfectly articulates how anime can be just as (if not more) affecting than the Hollywood films most Westerners grew up with.
Which is to say, this book just might make a fan out of that non-fan in your life. And isn't that what we current fans want most? To spread our love of anime to others? I know I do. And I think "Anime Impact's" relatable recounting of classic anime can be just the thing to turn that trick. That makes it a win in my book.
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